Corey and Stefan Kuhn(twitter: @StefanKuhn) have been friends "forever." They attended the same childhood birthday parties in their small town home of Canmore Alberta, and sucked back sliced oranges together during half time at soccer. Stefan is one of the most adept athletes Corey's ever met: immediately able to kick ass at everything from street sign snowball hucking to rock skipping.
Stefan is a year younger than Corey but Corey remembers him beating the kids in higher grades at at time when a year makes all the difference in terms of skill, ability and bragging rates. I've yet to meet Stefan but I can't wait to meet him - he sounds very cool. Corey describes him as an inspiring athlete, a dedicated skier, and a truly good friend, the kind that are so hard to find.
The Olympic Games are always mired with detractors and controversy in various forms, but at their root they're a forum for some truly astonishing human accomplishments.
This February, the Olympics are coming to our home city and Stefan is very likely going to be representing our country in a sport that is both grueling and under-recognized in a country that perpetually worships a little black puck.
Cross country skiing is a sport that tests mettle, muscle, and endurance. Wikipedia defines it: Cross-country skiing (commonly abbreviated XC skiing) is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles.
That kind of makes me want to huddle under a blanket with hot chocolate and a nearby fireplace, grateful for dry socks and proximity (far) to snow.
But it also makes me want to know a little bit more about the mindset of a person who would choose to do this everyday of the week, for up to 4 hours a day.
We posed some questions to Corey's childhood friend Stefan, and he was awesome enough to answer.
Q:
Have you ever had a moment in a race - or a series of moments leading up - where everything hurt too much and you contemplated stopping/quitting/giving up? If so, how do you quell those thoughts?
A:
I definitely get those thoughts. I think everyone gets them, it's what you do with them that separates accomplishment from failure. You can stop, or you can be stubborn and say: I can totally go further, this pain isn't stopping me. Two days ago I did a really difficult head and body intensity work out. I did 1 minute full-out with 2 minutes rest, and then 2 minutes full out with 4 minutes rest - repeat that 5 times. At the 4th repeat I was completely blown to bits and my coach was passing me on the uphills (though he would only ski with me for 30 seconds.) But I battled and pushed to keep going. Regular people stop when it hurts. In February, at the Olympics, I will need to prove that I am not a regular person, and can handle more pain.
Q:
Tell us about your diet and whether you ever allow yourself an ice cream sandwich?
A:
I do watch my diet and have our doctors test us after and before each big training block. There are two tests: 1 is blood and 1 is fat testing - where they take a caliper and pinch you.
Some of the sprinters can get too low - 7 to 7 and a half percent body fat. They need to raise that level if they get that low - you can only sustain on that for so long. As a world-class athlete, you don't ever want to go to 12%. I usually range around 10 and drop to 9 through the winter. We don't count calories: we eat as much as we can. In Mammoth at the high altitude camp we eat as many times a day, as much as we can. We don't specifically diet - just practice common sense. We eat lots of carbs, lean meat and vegetables -- we also take supplements - Green Plus. I've heard there's a great product coming called Juice Plus but it's not out just yet.
We are lucky that we're able to burn so many calories a day that ice cream is usually OK. Not a crazy amount, of course, but I can enjoy it for sure. I stay away from alcohol and unnatural sugars as much as I can.
Q:
What would be the pinnacle of accomplishment for you?
A:
Standing up on the podium in February at the Olympics.
Q:
Can you provide a high level overview of a week-in-the life training schedule?
A:
Ok well lets see this is what a day looks like then I will give you an hours break down.
- up around 8am , breakfast
- on the ski trail about 9am for a ski
- home for a shower then lunch
- then a nap, wake up strech , maybe a phyiso appointment
- have a snack
- head back out for a shorter ski
- shower and dinner
- in bed rather early for the most part
Week break down of hours
- Monday - 4hrs
- Tuesday – 3hrs
- Wednesday – intensity , 2.5hrs
- Thursday – 1.5hrs
- Friday – 3hrs
- Saturday – intensity 2.5hrs
- Sunday – 3hrs
Q:
What is one thing the general public doesn't know about Canadian Olympic athletes?
A:
Good: They're all big into the iPhone. Bell is our sponsor and we get free phones and free service. Our team recently got the iPhone and a lot of us have become addicted to the apps. itoilet is one. (ed note from Kristin: apparently the itoilet app allows you to find public toilets. I think the appeal of this must be a man thing.)
Bad: The pain of an extremely arduous session is hard to articulate and I think few people can understand the gruelling physical component of Olympic level training.
Q:
Who and what inspires you to be better, go higher, try harder?
A:
Canada is not a power house in skiing. Our youth tend to go to hockey and other athletics; typically kids have higher priorities in other high profile sports. In countries like Norway, cross country is the highlight on TV sports recaps, it's permanently in the media during winter. It's not the same way in this country. I have fans in Norway that have photos of me and try to find me at events; very different culture. Crazy.
My family and friends here, though, pull for me every time I race. I want to make a statement with my skiing: being the best I can as an individual, and contributing to the power and competitiveness of my team. I've always been competitive and this sport pushes me to the max. I love that.
Q:
How are your races going so far this year. What events can we hope to see you in this Feb?
A:
I'm going to Yellowstone in a week and I'm only doing 2 races because the focus right now is the Olympics. I hope to be representing Canada in the Classic Sprint, relay, and 50km classic. I won't know till December for sure that I'm going. Every country waits till right before the Olympics to decide who's on the team. There's a pretty good idea now of who is going and who's not, but there may be some last minute surprises.
Q:
What kind of advise can you give to someone to keep motivated will training.
A:
Establishing the right goal for you is crucial...the thought of obtaining that goal should give you energy or adrenaline or some kind of happiness. I've had some amazing races - last year I was the first Canadian to win a B-world cup in sprinting. When I crossed that finish line I was so pumped and fired up - it was worth every bit of pain and sweat.
Recent Results
| Race date |
Place |
Nation |
Category |
Discipline |
Position |
Points |
| 24-08-2009 |
Snowfarm |
NZE |
Australia/New Zealand Cup |
SP 1.0 km F Final |
5 |
|
| 24-08-2009 |
Snowfarm |
NZE |
Australia/New Zealand Cup |
SP 1.0 km F Qual |
1 |
52.48 |
| 23-08-2009 |
Snowfarm |
NZE |
Australia/New Zealand Cup |
15 km C |
5 |
42.29 |
| 29-03-2009 |
Fairbanks, AK |
USA |
National Championships |
50 km C Mst |
1 |
26.15 |
| 27-03-2009 |
Fairbanks, AK |
USA |
National Championships |
15 km C Pursuit |
DNS |
|
| 24-03-2009 |
Fairbanks, AK |
USA |
National Championships |
10 km C |
2 |
39.16 |
| 15-03-2009 |
Highlands Nordic |
CAN |
National Championships |
50 km F Mst |
8 |
56.65 |
| 13-03-2009 |
Highlands Nordic |
CAN |
National Championships |
SP 1.2 km C Qual |
1 |
40.35 |
| 12-03-2009 |
Highlands Nordic |
CAN |
National Championships |
SP 1.2 km C Final |
4 |
|
Check out these links for more information:
Web: http://www.stefankuhn1.com
Twitter: twitter.com/StefanKuhn
Also stefan is going to try to reply to any comments made on this post. So feel free to ask hime any questions directly
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